


The Road Home

by CynicalMistrust



Series: Putting the Pieces Back in Their Places [2]
Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Angst, Fluff, M/M, Multi, Rage form Sora, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-24
Updated: 2019-02-24
Packaged: 2019-11-04 17:32:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,210
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17902460
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CynicalMistrust/pseuds/CynicalMistrust
Summary: Riku sat up, rubbing at his face as he heaved a sigh. He knew he wouldn’t be able to get back to sleep, so there was no point in even trying. He stared at his hands in the darkness, hating how helpless he felt.Post KH3 - spoilers





	The Road Home

**Author's Note:**

> Companion piece to my 'Even Darkness Has Its Shadows' drabbles

Riku woke in the middle of the night, arm outstretched towards the ceiling and a sharp ache in his chest. Every night, he dreamed of finding Sora, of walking through an empty World filled with only memories that weren’t his. At the edge, a door, and Sora’s voice, weak but steady, calling through from the other side. 

Each night he got a little further, heard Sora’s voice a little louder, but he always woke before he found a way through the murky darkness. 

Riku sat up, rubbing at his face as he heaved a sigh. He knew he wouldn’t be able to get back to sleep, so there was no point in even trying. He stared at his hands in the darkness, hating how helpless he felt. 

He knew the World in his dreams was somewhere in the depths of the Realm of Darkness. He’d scoured as far as he could without getting lost, as often as he could. But that didn’t make it any easier to wake every night, knowing Sora was calling out to him, and that he was too slow to do anything to help him. 

He curled his hands into fists, closing his eyes as he took a deep breath. He looked out the window, staring at the moon as he let his breath out in a slow sigh. 

“I will find you, Sora. I promise. Hang on just a little longer.”  
  


* * * * *  
  


“You want me to what?” Ienzo stared at Riku, nearly dropping the tablet in his hand.

Riku stifled a sigh, swallowing down his impatient frustration. He knew most of it was due to sleep deprivation anyway. “Can you do it?”

“I-” Ienzo frowned, setting his tablet aside. “Technically yes, but... Can I ask why?”

Riku hesitated, unsure if he should tell Ienzo the truth or not, but it wasn’t as though he couldn’t be trusted. “You know I haven’t been sleeping well.” That was no secret around here. He’d been seen taking care of tasks in the middle of the night that could wait until morning the past few weeks. He just hadn’t mentioned the  _ whole  _ truth of why to anyone outside of Mickey.

“Sora needs my help,” Riku continued quietly, “and I can’t get to him unless I’m in a sleep deep enough I can’t wake up on my own.”

Ienzo’s frown deepened. “For how long?”

“A full night, at least.” Surely that would be enough time. If not to find Sora, then to at least get through the door and see what he’d be dealing with. Maybe get some idea of where or how deep Sora was.

Ienzo crossed his arms, tapping a finger above his elbow before sighing. “I suppose there’s no harm in it. You look like you could use the rest. But I want monitors on you, and at least two of us to keep an eye on you through the night.”

Riku nearly sagged in relief. “Thank you.”

Ienzo nodded. “Come back tomorrow night. We should be ready then.”  
  


* * * * *  
  


Riku eyed the wires and screens that monitored every vital sign he had with a bemused expression. “Is all this really necessary?”

“Yes,” Ienzo said, “now let us work.”

Riku sighed. By the time they were finished, his chest, arms, and stomach were covered in little circles with wires coming out of them. They all attached to the several pieces of machinery and computers surrounding the bed. 

“Alright. If whatever you’re trying to do doesn’t work… the next thing you know, you’ll be waking up tomorrow morning.” Ienzo clasped Riku’s shoulder as Ansem took his other arm, injecting the liquid that would put him to sleep.

Riku gritted his teeth as a cold sensation spread through his arm, blinking and focusing on his breathing. His eyelids grew heavier, his head lulling to the side.   
  


* * * * *  
  


The door was in front of him, Sora’s voice a faint echo from the darkness. 

Riku took a deep breath. Everything felt sharper than it usually did. Less like his hand would pass through whatever he tried to touch. More like he was truly here. 

He stepped into the darkness, a chill traveling through his body as the temperature dropped. Wisps of black and deep blue coiled around him like smoke as he pushed through. Wherever this was, it was deeper in the Realm of Darkness than he’d ever been. 

He could feel the desolation eating at him already, the loneliness and despair clawing along the edges of his senses. The sleep deprivation wasn’t helping.

_ Help… me _ . 

“Sora,” he murmured, focusing on the faint sound of Sora’s voice, the pull in his chest. It was so weak, even here. 

He wasn’t sure how long he walked or how far, before the murky fog of darkness finally lifted.

It left him in a complete void. There was no light. Not even a glimmer or a spark. 

He stopped moving, unable to see anything but black no matter where he looked. He had half a mind to draw his Keyblade, but he sensed there was something here and he had no desire to make himself a shining target. 

_ Help… me.  _

Riku sucked in a breath, his eyes adjusting enough he was sure he saw something moving. Maybe it was just his mind playing tricks. 

The hair on his arms stood on end when he felt something behind him.

_ “Help… me.”  _

Riku spun, and a moment later something crashed into his chest and he was on his back, staring up into two glowing yellow eyes. “Sor-aaahh!” 

Sharp claws dug into his shoulder, piercing the skin. He swore he could smell blood, the sharp scent of it stronger than it should have been. Riku hissed through the pain, reaching his other arm out, trying to push the Heartless Sora away. It only served to make Sora dig his claws in harder. 

“S-Sora. It’s me,” Riku said, gritting his teeth against the pain. He wrapped his arm around Sora instead, pulling him closer, until he felt soft, quick breaths against his neck. “I’m here. Sora, I’m here.”

Sora went still. His grip on Riku’s shoulder went slack. “ _ Ri… ku…?”  _

“Yeah.” Riku closed his eyes, fighting back the rush of relief as he tightened his grip. “I found you.”

Sora pulled back, looking down at Riku. His yellow eyes glowed bright in the pitch black. _ “Riku.”  _

“Sora.”

_ “So..ra..”  _

Riku swallowed and carefully pushed up to a sitting position. “Yeah. You’re Sora.” He let out a slow breath, holding his arm out to the side and calling his Keyblade. 

Sora snarled and vanished at the flare of light, reappearing a few feet away, crouched low to the ground. 

“It’s okay.” Riku risked a glance around, breathing a soft sigh of relief when he didn’t see any other Heartless lurking nearby. That likely wouldn’t last long, with his Keyblade acting as a beacon. “I know you’re still in there, Sora. You can come back now. Everyone’s waiting for you.”

Sora ported half a foot closer.  _ “Back… home..?”  _

Riku smiled. “Yeah.” He blinked as Sora’s right eye flashed with blue, tightening his grip on his Keyblade. “I'm here to bring you home.” 

Sora flinched back.  _ “No.”  _

“No?” Riku frowned, unease settling in his gut. “What do you mean, no?”

Sora crouched, wrapping his arms around his knees and rocking back and forth. “I can’t go back,” he whispered, his right eye solidifying into the bright blue Riku was used to seeing. “Everyone is happy now. If I go back… that would go away.”

“Bullshit,” Riku snapped. “We’re not all happy. How can you think that?” Riku clasped his hand over his arm, wincing as he felt blood, but it wasn’t bad enough to worry about right then. He forced a smile when Sora stared at him. “We all miss you.  _ I  _ miss you,” he said firmly. “We started this mess together. I’m not resting until we’re all back together again.”

Sora looked away. “Someone might come after you and Kairi again if I’m there.”

Riku sighed. “They might anyway. Even if you’re not there. And what are we supposed to do when they do and you’re not there to stand with us?”

“You’d be fine without me,” Sora whispered.

Riku frowned. “Sora… You’ve never given into the darkness before. What’s wrong with you?”

Sora pressed his chin into his knees. “I’m tired,” he whispered. “I’m tired of always fighting and chasing after you.” He closed his eyes. “It’s quiet here.”

Riku watched Sora in silence, taking deep breaths to keep himself calm. He couldn’t have come all this way just to be thwarted by Sora finally experiencing a moment of self-doubt. He crossed his legs, setting his Keyblade across his lap and ripping a strip of cloth off the bottom of his shir. He tied it around his arm. “Alright,” he said, leaning back on his hands when he was done. “I’ll stay with you then.” He just hoped whatever Ienzo had given him would last long enough for him to talk some sense into the idiot across from him. 

Sora looked up with a frown, both of his eyes blue now. “You can’t.”

“Why not?”

“Because Kairi and the others need you.”

Riku tilted his head. “If they’re fine without you, they can do without me too.”

Sora’s frown deepened. “No they can’t.”

“Then I guess you better come back with me.” 

“Riku-”

“I’m not leaving here without you, Sora,” Riku said firmly. He raised an eyebrow when Sora stared at him. When the silence stretched between them, he finally sighed. “How could you even think, after everything, after all we’ve done to find each other again, that any of us would be fine with you just disappearing?”

Sora winced, looking away.

Riku took the chance to shift closer, reaching out to touch Sora’s arm. “Sora… Please. Come back with me.”

Sora looked up at him, and for a moment, Riku was sure he was going to argue. “You’re sure?” he asked softly.

Riku smiled, sliding his hand to Sora’s shoulder and squeezing. “Positive. Get your butt back where it belongs.”

Sora finally cracked a smile, leaning into Riku before blinking in confusion. “Riku?”

Riku felt the strange pull on his mind, felt his body fading, and cursed. “I’m waking up… Sora, listen to me. Get to the beach, the one we found together. Do you remember?”

Sora grasped at Riku’s fading form. “Riku!”

“I’ll wait for you there. Promise me, Sora!” The last thing Riku saw was Sora’s panicked expression, but he heard Sora’s fading voice as he shouted, “I promise!”  
  


* * * * *  
  


Riku woke with a gasp, rolling to his side as he coughed and choked as his stomach churned. 

“Riku! Easy. Just breathe,” Ienzo said. 

Riku groaned as hands guided him back onto the bed, squinting against the lights. “Sora,” he groaned, trying to push himself up and growling as the same hands pushed him back down.

“Stop moving. You need to rest.”

Riku growled in frustration, trying to push the hands away and missing by miles when his arms would hardly even move. “Need to get to Sora.”

“You’re not going anywhere for a couple hours at least.”

Riku slumped back on the bed, squeezing his eyes shut as the room spun. He’d promised Sora he’d be there. He just hoped Sora was able to get to the beach without running into trouble. He drifted in and out of consciousness as whatever drugs Ienzo had given him worked their way out of his body. When he woke some time later, Kairi was sitting in the chair next to him. 

She stood up when Riku moved, moving to the bed and clasping his hand. “Ienzo said you mentioned Sora,” she said softly. She picked up a glass of water, holding it to Riku’s lips.

“Yeah,” he murmured, taking a few sips before sitting up. “He’s supposed to be waiting for me. I gotta go get him.”

Kairi helped him sit up. “I’m going with you.”

“What? No you’re not. He’s in the Realm of Darkness.”

“All the more reason you shouldn’t go alone.”

Riku knew he should argue, but if Sora had made it there, he might need more convincing to come back. He sighed, deciding against wasting time. “Fine. Come on.”  
  


 

It took another couple hours to get to the beach.

Sora was waiting for them, crouched near the water. He turned at the sound of their approach, his yellow eyes fading to blue, the rest of his form shifting back to normal. “Riku. Kairi.”

Kairi rushed forward, throwing her arms around Sora with a soft sob. “Sora! Where have you been?”

Riku was right behind her, wrapping his arms around both of them with a soft sigh of relief. 

Sora made a soft whimpering sound as he clung to both of them. “We can… really all be together again?” he asked quietly.

“Of course, you idiot,” Riku murmured, hissing as Kairi stepped on his foot. He pinched her in return before lowering his head to where theirs were bent close together. “Yeah,” he added softly. “We can all go home. The others are waiting.”

Riku didn’t protest in the least as they walked out of the Realm, Sora between them, holding both his and Kairi’s hands. 

Sora was home.  
  



End file.
